Harbaugh then went on to praise the incumbent Smith, who appeared to have one foot out the door despite reaching the NFC Championship Game in 2011.

“I’ve said it all along, Alex Smith has been our quarterback,” Harbaugh said. “There’s no scenario other than Alex choosing to sign with another team that we would have considered him not as our quarterback. It’s time to set the record straight. (more…)

Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion may have a career year, blasting 16 home runs and 41 RBIs in just 50 games this season. Photo by: Kim Cooke / Flickr

The Toronto Blue Jays have been near the bottom of the AL East for a long time. Even when they had superstar Roy Halladay, they were troubled to find success in such a powerful division. This year is different, however. Anything looks possible with the New YorkYankees and Boston Red Sox both hovering around .500 and upstart Baltimore Orioles leading the pack. Barring injury, the Blue Jays could contend and win the division this year. These three things are the reasons why:

The 29-year-old slugger is everything you could want in a Robin to Jose Bautista‘s Batman. He can play first base, third base, and even DH for the Blue Jays. Entering Tuesday, he has 16 HR’s and 41 RBI’s. This puts him tied for 2nd in home runs and 3rd in RBI’s in the whole league. His average is starting to creep back towards .300, sitting at a decent .274 entering the night. He is focused and on fire, which is scary for all AL East teams, especially once Bautista starts to hit. (more…)

Major Leaguer Manny Ramirez is suspected to join the Oakland Athletics some time next week. Photo by: Ethan Bagley / Flickr

BY WADE MCMILLIN, Couchsideshow.com editor

After two long suspensions for failing two separate drug tests, it looks as if Major Leaguer Manny Ramirez will once again return to the diamond for yet another short stint in baseball.

Except this time, the 40-year-old won’t be coming back to a marquee team. Instead he’ll lace up his cleats fore the underachieving Oakland Athletics, who rank dead last in overall offensive production, sometime next week. Will Ramirez be able to provide a spark to this dismal offense or stay clean for an entire season? It’s possible, but as my British friends say, ‘it’s not bloody likely.’

I have to believe that Ramirez can last the rest of this season without failing yet another drug test. However, it’s a stretch to think he can add much to Oakland’s pathetic offense, which is batting a majors-low .211 as a team with just 42 home runs, 162 runs and an embarrassing 384 strikeouts to 159 walks. (more…)

The Miami Heat have struggled more than triumphed without star forward Chris Bosh in the lineup. Photo by: Bridget Samuels / Flickr

From the start of the NBA season, the Miami Heat have been the Eastern Conference favorite to advance to the NBA Finals.

After Chris Bosh’s abdominal strain that sidelined him in Game 1 of the Eastern Semifinals, and falling behind 2-1 in the series, the Heat were thrown into a must-win scenario in Game 4. It was the first time all season that Erik Spoelstra’s squad had been in danger of being eliminated by a non-elite team (any team outside of the Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, and San Antonio Spurs). Their one-game deficit also marked the widespread realization of how important Chris Bosh is to the Heat. Bosh often gets discounted when it comes to the Big Three. Dwayne Wade is the long-time hero of Miami who brought a championship to South Beach. LeBron James is the four-time MVP who puts the Heat on his back night in and night out. And what is Chris Bosh? In reality he is an All-Star level talent who has 20 ppg and 10 rpg potential; however, the former Georgia Tech forward is the third scoring option in Miami and does not get the credit he deserves for the role he plays alongside D-Wade and LeBron. (more…)

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton had an outstanding rookie year last season. The question is, can he follow it up in 2012-2013? Photo by: Parker Anderson

There have been several forces working against Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton this offseason.

The first was the “Madden Cover Curse,” which Newton seemingly avoided by losing the vote to Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson. Now, fans are worried that Newton will fall victim to a “sophomore slump” after putting up ridiculous numbers during his rookie season. However, Newton will have the benefit of a full offseason heading into his second year – something that he didn’t have last season because of the lockout.

While Ron Rivera is certainly aware that it won’t be an easy task for Newton to duplicate his record-breaking rookie season, the Panthers head coach isn’t concerned about a potential slump for his star quarterback. (more…)

The Royals have released infielder Rafael Furcal, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star reports on Twitter. Furcal was only recently brought into camp on a minor league deal and had been working through a hamstring injury. The 37-year-old saw only minimal action last year with Miami and has generally been unable to stay healthy since going down with a UCL […]

The Brewers have re-signed righty Chris Perez to a minor league deal, the club announced. Milwaukee had released Perez on Sunday. Perez, a former closer with the Indians, seemingly took some time to look around for a big league opportunity before deciding to return. At least one team, the Twins, was approached but declined the chance to add him, Darren Wolfs […]

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TUESDAY, 3:42pm: The hiring is official, the school announced. MONDAY, 3:41pm: Mullin has accepted the St. John’s job, report Roger Rubin and Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. SUNDAY, 4:37pm: Chris Mullin, who has been an adviser in the Kings’ front office since September 2013, is expected to accept an offer from St. […]

University of Houston junior guard Jherrod Stiggers will forgo his senior season and turn pro, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston, making him eligible for the NBA draft. However, it’s highly unlikely that he’ll be drafted, as Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress has him unranked as a prospect, while Chad Ford of ESPN.com doesn’t have […]

The San Diego Chargers officially signed G Michael Huey, and placed G Jeff Baca and DT Chas Alecxih on waivers, according to the NFL Transaction release. Huey, 26, originally signed on with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent out of back in 2011. He later signed a three-year contract with the Chargers, but was unable to ... The post Chargers Sign G Micha […]

Draft Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that FSU DL Eddie Goldman will be visiting with the Browns, Colts, 49ers, Lions, Patriots, and Panthers over the next few weeks. The Panthers met with UConn CB Byron Jones again on Tuesday after the workout, and the Patriots met with him this morning, according to Tony Pauline. Tony Pauline reports ... The post NFL Not […]

The Chicago Bears announced the signing of former Falcons RB Jacquizz Rodgers to a one-year contract on Tuesday. #Bears have signed RB Jacquizz Rodgers to a one-year contract. https://t.co/GGmBBclJGk — Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) March 31, 2015 Rodgers, 25, is a former fifth-round pick of the Falcons back in 2011. He payed out his four-year, $2,231,000 roo […]